Owaisi Targets Modi Govt Over Breaching Minority Reservation In PhD, Axing Maulana Azad Fellowship

New Delhi: Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) University has been allegedly accused of violating the 50% reservation policy for Muslim students in PhD admissions, threatening affirmative action and autonomy. As per recent reports, various departments have failed to meet quotas, compromising educational equity.

Now, the AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi has raised the concern of violation by the central government over its breach of rule. the AIMIM chief said, “Jamia reserved 50% of its PhD slots for Muslims as a minority institution, but the government has breached this rule. It aimed to boost Muslim higher education, which dropped by nearly 1.8 lakh students in 2020-21. Muslims form 14% of India’s population yet only 4.5% of PhD enrolments.”.

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While targeting the Modi government for its attempt to erase the Maulana Azad Fellowship, Owaisi said, “The Modi government axed the Maulana Azad Fellowship, a scholarship for minority PhD students, clearly aiming to keep Muslims educationally, economically, socially, and politically disadvantaged”.

Jamia reserved 50% of its PhD slots for Muslims as a minority institution, but the government has breached this rule. It aimed to boost Muslim higher education, which dropped by nearly 1.8 lakh students in 2020-21. Muslims form 14% of India’s population yet only 4.5% of PhD…

— Asaduddin Owaisi (@asadowaisi) February 26, 2025

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The Maulana Azad Fellowship Scheme (MANF) used to provide five year fellowships in the form of financial assistance to students from six notified minority communities viz. Buddhist, Christian, Jain, Muslim, Parsi and Sikh to pursue M. Phil and Ph.D. However, in 2022, the Centre decided to discontinue the Maulana Azad National Fellowship (MANF) that was launched during the UPA regime as part of implementing the Sachar Committee recommendations.